There was an enormous Supreme Court decision this week about campaign finance. There was a tragedy this week at Fort Hood. Yet here in New York, many people were talking about Daniel Murphy, the Mets second baseman after his decision to skip a couple of games to be with his wife after the birth of their first child.

According to the Associated Press, Murphy called remaining in Florida an extra day “the right decision to make” after his wife Victoria’s cesarean section and said “we felt the best thing for our family was for me to stay.”

Thanks to a collective bargaining agreement, Murphy is assured the right to take up to three days off. However, among some baseball fans and many male members of the sports media, one would have thought Murphy robbed a bank. He faced particularly hot criticism from sports broadcasters Mike Francesa and Boomer Esiason.

“You’re a Major League Baseball player,” Francesa said on air. “You can hire a nurse to take care of the baby if your wife needs help.”